Wimbledon champion in tears after retiring on the spot with brutal US Open thrashing

Petra Kvitova's glittering career officially came to an end as she suffered a one-sided defeat in her final match. Earlier this year, the former world No. 2 announced that she would be retiring at the US Open. And she entered retirement with a brutal 6-1 6-0 loss to Diane Parry on Monday.

The two-time Wimbledon champion burst into tears as she was honoured in a special on-court ceremony, before addressing the crowd and thanking her loved ones.

Kvitova missed the entire 2024 season to welcome her first child, and she only returned from a pregnancy break in February of this year, losing her comeback match to Britain's Jodie Burrage in Austin.

The 35-year-old finally got a long-awaited match win at the Italian Open. But by June, she had shared her plans to retire in Flushing Meadows.

Kvitova had not played since going out in the first round at Wimbledon, and the last match of her career ended in just 52 minutes, as she won only one game against Parry.

She started crying at her bench while US Open organisers played a highlight reel on the screens, and was presented with a commemorative photo frame in an emotional presentation.

"Thank you guys for coming. I hoped I would put on a better show today, but it was really amazing, tough to know that maybe it's my last one and emotional, it was really tough," the 31-time title winner told the fans on the Grandstand arena.

"I'm not sure how I'm going to talk right now after the video and everything. But thank you, Stacey [Allaster, tournament director[ for always having me, for everything you've done, and thank you, New York, for an amazing Grand Slam. I'm very happy to be here for my last dance.

"And thank you to my husband and coach in one person. Thank you, my agent. Thank you for my family back home, my parents, they sacrificed a lot for me at the beginning, and yeah, my ex-coaches as well. Thank you. So, yeah, it's been a long and amazing journey. Thank you very much."

Kvitova won Wimbledon in 2011 and again in 2014. She reached her career-high ranking of No. 2 in the world for the first time in October 2011, after winning the WTA Finals Istanbul on her tournament debut.

The Czech star made a remarkable comeback after her left playing hand was injured in a knife attack during a break-in at her home shortly before Christmas in 2016. She returned a few months later at the French Open.

By the end of 2018, Kvitova had picked up five more titles and retired to the world's top five. She started the 2019 season by reaching the Australian Open final, and returned to No. 2 in the world. She won the Miami Open in 2023, and the last of her 31 titles came a few months later at the WTA 500 in Berlin.

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